Texas man found beaten to death in the Mexican border city of Piedras Negras

Authorities in Mexico say a Texas man was brutally beaten to death in the border city of Piedras Negras, Coahuila, located just south of Eagle Pass, Texas on Wednesday.

Law enforcement officials said an assailant beat 49-year-old Fort Worth resident Rodolfo Tellez to death with a metal pipe.

Federal, state and local police units responded to calls of a deadly shooting around 3 p.m. Wednesday, in the Vista Hermosa Colony of Pedras Negras. and found the Texas native, lying in a pool of blood next to his black Ford pickup F-150 pickup truck.

The Coahuila State Attorney General’s Office said witnesses told police they saw Tellez driving erratically at hight speeds in his pickup truck before his death.

The battered body of a Texas man was discovered in the border city of Pedras Negras on Wednesday

Local resident Javier Eduardo Franco told Noticieros Air Rancherita when he saw the mortally wounded man, he tried to help him and immediately notified the authorities.

According to the publication, Tellez was temporarily living in the Piedras Negras at the time of his death.

The Attorney General’s Office said investigators questioned witnesses and individuals who are believed to have last communicated with Tellez.

Officials said authorities are now searching for the suspect, identified as a nephew of the victim, who is believed to have fled the city.

The state of Coahuila is a known stronghold for the brutal Los Zetas cartel, who use the region as a staging point for narcotics and human trafficking operations into the United States.

Officials haven’t indicated whether investigators have identified a motive or if they suspect the murder to be related to the drug trade.